Living Alsacion

We were able to stay with the young and lithe Morgane in her Air BnB in a perfect location in Strasbourgh. We entered her building from a narrow very old street and pass the residents’ trash cans and bikes in the downstairs hallway. There is a restaurant in the building and you can smell the platedu jour and see the deliveries stacked up in the hall. This feels like the real deal. Then up, up the winding staircases to the fourth floor, we emerged into sleek, yet homey, condo fit into this building that has so much history. (One thing that we found amusing is that Morgane has a very small, as you might expect in such an old building. The surprise is the size of the oven and the wine frig that is tucked into the small space. Priorities.

The guest room had a terrace adjoining it with the most wonderful view of the spire of the Cathedral and rooftops at all angles. Morgane was full of information and extremely hospitable, greeting us with Crement D’Alsace (sparkling local wine) and pretzels. Our first dinner in Strasbourg was at a small place around the corner, which Morgane reccommeded. We had the Alsatian dish, tarte flame. It is sort of like a thin crust pizza, with without tomato sauce. Onions, lots of cheese and often bacon are the toppings. It was fantastic, but the best part was meeting a woman there who lived in the building and was willing to let me try out my French on her. We were of an age and she spoke much better English than I spoke French, but it was just such a kick to have this conversation about our kids and travels.

This was the perfect place to stay while exploring such a phenomenal city. Our Air BnB experiences have been some of the most rewarding of the trip. I don’t think I will ever want to stay in a hotel again.

One of our walks was to the Musee d”Alsace, photos included of the way the people lived in the last few centuries.